Martin Riese: The World's Leading Water Sommelier Transforming How We Taste Water

In a world obsessed with craft coffee, artisanal wine, and specialty spirits, one man has dedicated his career to elevating the most overlooked beverage of all: water. Martin Riese, recognized as America's first and most prominent water sommelier, has spent years challenging the notion that "water is just water." Through his expertise, advocacy, and entrepreneurial ventures, Riese has transformed water from a mundane necessity into a sophisticated tasting experience—and in the process, sparked important conversations about water quality, sustainability, and appreciation.

Who is Martin Riese?

Born and raised in Germany, Martin Riese developed his unusual career path in a country where bottled water culture is deeply ingrained. Unlike in America, where tap water dominates and bottled water is often viewed skeptically, Germans have long appreciated the diverse flavors and mineral profiles of different water sources. This cultural context shaped Riese's palate and his understanding that water, far from being tasteless, offers a remarkable spectrum of flavors.

Riese trained in hospitality in Germany and became certified as a water sommelier—a profession that, while uncommon, does exist in parts of Europe where fine dining culture embraces water as seriously as wine. In 2009, he made the bold decision to move to Los Angeles, bringing his water expertise to a country where the concept of a "water sommelier" seemed almost comically pretentious to many Americans.

Despite initial skepticism and ridicule (he's been featured in segments poking fun at the very idea of water having sommeliers), Riese persevered. Today, he's a respected voice in water quality advocacy, sustainable water sourcing, and the appreciation of mineral water as a legitimate culinary element.

The Science Behind Water's Taste

At the heart of Riese's work is a simple but often overlooked fact: water is not tasteless. The flavor of water depends entirely on its mineral content—the dissolved calcium, magnesium, sodium, bicarbonates, sulfates, and other trace elements it contains. These minerals come from the geological formations water passes through, making each water source unique.

Riese explains that water can taste:

• Sweet and smooth when low in minerals (soft water)
• Crisp and refreshing with balanced mineral content
• Bold or robust with high mineral concentration (hard water)
• Slightly salty when sodium levels are elevated
• Bitter or metallic depending on specific mineral combinations

The Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) measurement—indicating the concentration of minerals—is one key factor Riese uses to categorize water. But beyond TDS, the specific mineral profile creates subtle flavor notes. High calcium might contribute a creamy mouthfeel, while magnesium can add slight bitterness. Bicarbonates affect the water's pH and can create a softer, smoother taste.

For Riese, understanding these nuances allows for sophisticated water pairings with food—much like wine sommeliers match vintages to dishes.

Water Pairings and Fine Dining

One of Riese's signature contributions to culinary culture has been introducing water pairings at high-end restaurants. At Patina Restaurant in Los Angeles, where he served as water sommelier, he curated an extensive water menu featuring selections from around the world. He would guide diners through choosing waters that complemented their meals, considering factors like:

• The cuisine's flavor profile: Delicate seafood might pair with low-mineral water, while rich meats could stand up to bold, mineral-forward options
• Wine pairings: Ensuring the water doesn't clash with wine selections
• Personal preference: Some diners prefer soft, subtle water while others enjoy pronounced mineral flavors
• Progression through courses: Starting lighter and building to more complex waters

This approach transformed water from an afterthought into an integral part of the dining experience. While critics questioned whether such refinement was genuine or pretentious, Riese demonstrated through blind tastings that people can indeed distinguish between waters and have legitimate preferences.

Ray's: The World's First Water-Tasting Bar

In 2022, Riese opened Ray's, a bottle shop and tasting room in Los Angeles dedicated exclusively to water. This groundbreaking establishment offers over 80 different bottled waters from around the world, allowing customers to explore water the way oenophiles explore wine.

At Ray's, visitors can:

• Sample waters from different continents and geological sources
• Learn about mineral profiles and TDS levels
• Discover rare and unusual waters, including some with TDS levels exceeding 7,000 mg/L
• Participate in guided tastings that educate palates
• Purchase bottles to take home

The concept has attracted both curious locals and international visitors. Ray's represents Riese's mission to democratize water appreciation—making it accessible beyond exclusive fine dining establishments. It's also a celebration of water diversity, showcasing how geography, geology, and source protection create distinctive products worthy of attention.

Advocacy and Education

Beyond the hospitality aspects of his career, Martin Riese has emerged as an important advocate for water quality and sustainability. His platform allows him to address critical issues:

Tap Water Quality

Riese emphasizes that Americans should be more concerned about tap water quality. While he appreciates bottled water's diversity, he advocates for investment in infrastructure to ensure everyone has access to clean, safe tap water. He's spoken about contamination issues, aging pipes, and the need for better water treatment and testing.

Sustainable Bottled Water

Addressing the environmental concerns around bottled water, Riese promotes sustainable practices in the industry. He highlights brands using glass bottles, local sourcing to reduce transportation emissions, and companies committed to protecting their water sources for future generations.

Water Literacy

Much of Riese's work involves education—teaching people to understand what's in their water, how to read water labels, and why mineral content matters for health and taste. He's combated the myth that "pure" water (with zero minerals) is ideal, explaining that minerals in water contribute to daily nutritional intake.

Climate and Water Scarcity

Living in drought-prone California, Riese frequently discusses water scarcity, conservation, and the reality that clean water is increasingly precious. His expertise lends credibility to conversations about protecting water sources and using water mindfully.

The Fine Water Society

Riese is actively involved with the Fine Water Society, an organization dedicated to educating consumers, professionals, and the hospitality industry about water quality and appreciation. He contributes to their research, certifications, and educational programs that train water sommeliers globally.

Through this organization and his own efforts, Riese has helped establish standards for water service in restaurants, guidelines for water tasting methodology, and frameworks for understanding water categories—similar to how wine regions and varietals are classified.

Media Presence and Cultural Impact

Martin Riese has become something of a cultural phenomenon. He's appeared on numerous television shows, podcasts, and news segments, often initially invited as a curiosity but ultimately educating audiences about legitimate water differences. His appearances on shows like "Explained" (Netflix), various talk shows, and food media have brought water appreciation to mainstream consciousness.

His social media presence (@MartinRiese) regularly features water tastings, education about mineral content, advocacy posts about water quality issues, and glimpses into the world of premium bottled water. While he still encounters skeptics who insist water is water, he's accumulated a substantial following of people genuinely interested in the topic.

The Criticism and Response

Riese hasn't escaped criticism. Detractors argue that:

• Water sommeliers represent wasteful luxury when millions lack clean water access
• Bottled water culture is environmentally destructive
• The whole concept is marketing disguised as expertise
• Differences between waters are too subtle to matter

Riese addresses these concerns directly. He argues that appreciating water's complexity actually increases respect for the resource, potentially driving better conservation. He acknowledges bottled water's environmental challenges while advocating for sustainable practices. And he consistently demonstrates through tastings that water differences are real and perceptible, not imagined or invented for marketing.

His position is that education and appreciation aren't incompatible with sustainability and access—in fact, understanding water's value might be essential to protecting it.

The Broader Message

Ultimately, Martin Riese's work transcends simply selling premium water or creating exclusive tasting experiences. His mission is fundamentally about mindfulness—encouraging people to pay attention to something they consume daily but rarely consider.

In a world facing increasing water stress, pollution challenges, and quality concerns, Riese suggests that knowing what we're drinking, where it comes from, and what it contains is increasingly important. Whether someone chooses tap water, filtered water, or bottled water, making that choice consciously—with awareness of quality, source, and impact—represents a step toward more responsible water stewardship.

Conclusion

Martin Riese occupies a unique niche in culinary culture—part educator, part entrepreneur, part advocate. While the title "water sommelier" might initially sound absurd, his work reveals that water, like any natural product shaped by geography and geology, possesses genuine diversity worth exploring and understanding.

Whether you're convinced that high-end bottled water deserves the same reverence as fine wine or you remain skeptical of the entire enterprise, Riese has succeeded in making people think more carefully about the most essential substance on Earth. In raising water's profile from mundane to meaningful, he's sparked conversations that extend far beyond taste—encompassing health, environment, sustainability, and our relationship with the planet's most precious resource.

The next time you pour a glass of water, you might just pause to consider where it came from, what minerals it contains, and what it actually tastes like. And that moment of awareness, however brief, represents exactly what Martin Riese hopes to inspire.

 

 

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